Film Appreciation Society Announces Second Semester Schedule!

By Edward Baillargeon

The Film Appreciation Society club has announced their schedule for the second semester of the 2018-2019 school year. They will be presenting eight films chosen by students in the society from February to May showing two a month. The schedule includes a wide variety of genres and types of films ranging from small indies to big blockbusters all with free popcorn. But with some rules, attendees for any R-rated films in the schedule will need to give either a signed permission slip from a parent or guardian, or ask said parent via text message if it’s okay for them to go. So you can come to any of these movies and enjoy a movie after dealing all of the stress of school with students of similar interests. Here is the schedule for the Film Appreciation Society’s second semester.

Kicking things off in February is going to be Marvel Studios’ 2018 game-changer Black Panther. The students in the Society chose to show this in February in honor of Black History Month and with a major push in the superhero genre proving massive box office numbers. The film follows Prince T’Challa, the heir to the hidden but advanced kingdom of Wakanda, who must step forward to lead his people into a new future and confront a challenger from his country’s past. With its timely themes, an excellent cast, and good action, Black Panther will be shown on February 5.

Next up on the list is one of your’s truly picks on the schedule which is Baby Driver. This heist comedy from Edgar Wright, the writer-director of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World and Shaun of the Dead, follows Baby, a young getaway driver, as he tries to escape his life of crime when he falls in love with a waitress. With impressive action sequences that are timed to the film’s soundtrack and an all-star cast including the likes of Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Lily James, Jamie Foxx, and Jon Hamm, Baby Driver will drive to the screening on February 26. Please pick up a permission slip in the English office since this film is rated R for violence and language throughout.

But Baby Driver will not be the only Edgar Wright film in the schedule as the week after will be the arrival of Hot Fuzz. The second film in Wright’s Three Flavors Cornetto Trilogy stars Simon Pegg as Nicholas Angel, a highly skilled police officer who is partnered with a less skilled officer played by Nick Frost, and transferred to an investigation in a small town with a dark secret. Featuring all of the action and comedy you want from a buddy cop movie with a British twist, Hot Fuzz will be shown on March 5. Please pick up a permission slip in the English office since this film is rated R for violent content including some graphic images, and language.

Superhero movies in the modern era always aim for the sweet spot of the PG-13 rating that targets their main audience while younger viewers can still see them. But sometimes, like with any genre, there is always that one that likes to take whatever genre and goes in a raunchy. And that is the case with the next film with the R-rated superhero hit Deadpool. God’s Perfect Idiot and Golden Globe nominee Ryan Reynolds stars as Wade Wilson, a former Special Forces operative turned mercenary, who after being subjected to a rogue experiment the leaves him with accelerated healing powers, adopts alter ego Deadpool. Armed with his new abilities and a dark, twisted sense of humor, Deadpool hunts down the man who nearly destroyed his life. With all of the fourth wall breaks, brutal violence, and dirty jokes you want in a movie like this, Deadpool will be shown on March 26. Please pick up a permission slip in the English office since this film is rated R for strong violence and language throughout, graphic nudity, and sexual content.

Sometimes people love a movie that they know is absolutely terrible, but is so horribly made that viewers can’t help but laugh at how terrible but awesome it is. For example, one of my favorite “so-bad-it’s-good” movies is The Room, which was shown last year. But with this good bad movie, this one is particularly infamous for both killing the reputation of this DC Comics character’s filmography, and I am talking of course about Joel Schumacher’s 1997 misfire Batman & Robin. In the fourth installment in this Batman series that started with Tim Burton’s 1989 hit, Batman, this time played by George Clooney, and his sidekick Robin have to face off against Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy before they either cover Gotham City in ice or plants. Featuring a cast including Clooney, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Uma Thurman, and Alicia Silverstone, and filled with corny action, weird costume choices, and amazingly bad puns, Batman & Robin will be shown on April 2.

Right before Spring Break and in honor of the release of Avengers: Endgame, there will be a screening of Avengers: Infinity War to help those in need of a recap. The nineteenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the culmination of ten years of superhero cinema as the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy work together across the universe to stop the mad titan Thanos from collecting all six Infinity Stones and wiping out half of the universe’s population. With a cast too long to list in this article and a massive scope in its story and action, Avengers: Infinity War will be shown on April 16.

The first Netflix Original Film in the Film Appreciation Society schedule coming from Mike Newell, the director of Four Weddings and a Funeral and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, is a recently released historical drama. Based on the novel of the same name by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society takes place in the aftermath of World War II, where a writer forms an unexpected bond with the residents of Guernsey Island when she decides to write a book about their experiences during the war. With drama and romance and starring Baby Driver’s Lily James and The Haunting of Hill House’s Michael Huisman, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society will be shown on May 14.

Director Wes Anderson is a Film Appreciation Society favorite as some of his films have been frequently suggested and shown in the past including classics like The Grand Budapest Hotel, Moonrise Kingdom, Isle of Dogs, Rushmore, and The Darjeeling Limited. Anderson is known for his unique style consisting of a symmetrical and brightly colored framing style along with witty deadpan scripts performed by a cast with many recognizable names. For this year, the traditional Anderson film chosen was his 2001 comedy The Royal Tenenbaums. It’s the story of three grown prodigies, all with a unique genius of some kind, and their mother are staying at the family household. Their father, Royal had left them long ago, and comes back to to make things right with his family. With the deadpan humor and symmetrical directing of Wes Anderson, and featuring a cast including Gene Hackman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Anjelica Huston, Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Bill Murray, Danny Glover, and Alec Baldwin, The Royal Tenenbaums will be shown on May 21. Please pick up a permission slip in the English office since this film is rated R for some language, sexuality/nudity, and drug content.

About the Author

Edward Baillargeon

Hi! My name is Edward Baillargeon, I’m a film critic and editor of the Entertainment section of the newspaper. I was born on June 5, 2001, in Armada, Michigan, moved to Fayetteville, Georgia in 2009, and have lived in East Amherst, New York since December 2010. I’ve always had a passion for film and animation since I was a child and love going to the cinema and sharing my thoughts on a movie I just saw. I live with my parents and my brother Philip, the International editor, and my three cats Berlioz, Yuki, and Jiji. My favorite movies include WALL•E, Kubo and the Two Strings, V for Vendetta, Little Miss Sunshine, and The Truman Show. My favorite TV shows include BoJack Horseman, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Family Guy, South Park, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (yes, I’m a brony), Aggretsuko, and Seinfeld. I like working with a clear schedule and hate being the one guy who has to do everything on assignments.